Decaying Enchantment
by abigailchase
Summary: In 2007, technology in the world is at its best. The magical world is decaying as the world of technology is growing and only a handful of wizards and witches are left. Will Harry Potter succeed his mission, or will darkness pull him and Ginny in forever?
1. Chapter 1

Done for **heartdamoose**'s writing class. I hope I get a good grade on it… -sweatdrops-

Anyways, this is done for a writing class on Third Floor Corridor, a Harry Potter message board. Please, go visit there, and join, get sorted! When you do, tell them that I referred you with this name: **kimberlyrian**. Thanks all, and go have fun!

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, or any of the characters in this story.**

**Decaying Enchantment **

****

**Chapter 1 **

Run. Breathe. Flashing lights. Fear.

That's all that registered and ran through his mind at the moment.

Already messy black hair whipped around his head as his legs propelled him forward. Emerald eyes searched frantically for a place to go.

Behind him, sirens sounded, the sound of a motored car humming menacingly as it chased him down, gaining on his speed.

"If you stop now, you will get off easy. Stop now!"

He kept running, though. The lighting shaped scar on his forehead seemed to glow in the moonlight as he kept going. He had to reach his destination. If he didn't, he would have failed…

"Stop now, or we will be forced to open fire!"

"Crap in a hat…" He hissed angrily as he looked over his shoulder when the car gained on him again, and, slowly, he stopped.

He was spent, out of breath, totally exhausted. Gasping for air, bending over to put his hands on his knees, he vaguely heard and saw the cars swooping around him to stop.

Men in black suits with gold badges on it jumped out of the doors on the drivers side, pulling a gun from its holster.

"Don't move, or we will be forced to shoot!"

He didn't move, as he was told. The only thing moving was his still heaving chest, puffs of steam escaping his lips in the frigid night air.

"Hands up in the air where we can see them!"

Slowly, he lifted his hands.

"Well, Mr. Harry Potter, you've certainly gotten yourself in a world of trouble, you bloody buffoon…" He hissed to himself.

"Silence!"

In that one word, he snapped his mouth shut.

With a sharp glare, his emerald gaze followed one of the officers as they quickly came towards him, gun still raised.

The next thing he knew, his cheek met cold metal, one of his hands being whipped behind his back in the process.

"Shit…" He whispered, his cheek throbbing.

"I got 'im! Search him!"

He felt hands checking around his sneakers, then up his pants to his jean pockets and waist, then up to his leather jacket, and the inside pockets.

"No, don't that's-"

He was silenced as his head was shoved against the car again.

"What in the hell is this?" The man holding it asked.

"It's just a stick of wood with a handle, can I have it back?" Harry asked in a slightly muffled voice, tone cold as the air around them.

"Why would you be carrying this around with you, boy?" One of them asked.

Harry remained silent from where he was painfully pinned against the car.

"ID?"

"Don't carry one. Don't need it where I live." He hissed angrily.

"Oh, feisty. So, again, I ask…why would you be carrying a stick with a handle around with you? You think you're some kind of wizard, or something?"

With that sentence, the officers around him started to laugh.

"Actually, yes I am." Harry said, and slipped his hand out of the grip it was in and grabbed the handle, whipping it from the man's hand, and with a loud crack, The-Boy-Who-Lived disappeared from the scene, leaving bewildered and frightened police man behind.

xXx

With another loud, resounding crack, Harry reappeared, and almost instantly, he fell to his knees, clutching his wand to his chest.

"Harry!"

He heard his name called, a couple of other times, by a different voices.

He felt a hand on his back, and he hissed in pain.

The hand was removed.

"Harry, are you all right? What happened?"

"…cops got me…had to apparate…"

"Oh Harry, you know you can't…"

"I had to, Gin…they were gonna arrest me because I didn't have an ID…and take my wand…"

"But Harry, I know it's painful to use magic at all…but apparating? Come on! In this world of technology, where our magic is fading, decaying, dying, it hurts to use it…"

"I know…"

Harry finally lifted his emerald gaze to look at the speaker, her hazel eyes staring right into his.

"I'll be okay, Ginny." He told the girl, reaching up to tuck red strands back behind her ear. A small smile graced his pained features. "It's starting to go away, I'll be fine."

"You sure?" She whispered, head tilted to the side.

He nodded.

"Did you find anything out?"

He gave off a weary sigh. "No. I only saw them killing the muggles, nothing more."

"So…how are they using all this magic without consequence?" Ginny asked, swallowing.

Harry's chest seemed to heave once more in a prolonged sigh.

"I don't know, Gin…but I have a way in and a way to get rid of them now…"

"How?"

"Not now, later…I need to rest…" He said, jadedly getting to his feet.

"All right, Harry…" Ginny whispered, helping him walk through the darkened halls of the building, closed doors and silence all that greeted the pair as they walked.

"Good night, Harry." Ginny said once they had reached the room.

"Where is everyone?" Harry asked, leaning against the doorway as she moved away.

"What do you mean, Harry?" She asked softly.

"Where is everyone? Ron, 'Mione, Tonks, Fred, George…" As he asked this, she gave him a saddened look. "What?"

"You don't remember. Like always."

"What do you mean, Gin?" He stopped, blinking a few times as he looked her over once or twice. She had a sad look on her old looking face. The poor girl…she was only twenty, yet she looked thirty. She'd had such a great responsibility thrust upon her at such a young age…Harry wished that she didn't look like that. She didn't deserve to be so sad, or to have her childhood taken away in a heartbeat, like it had, to have to mature so quickly.

"They're gone, Harry."

He blinked again, his heart sinking. "What? Gone? How?"

"We were at the ministry, a year ago, trying to stop Voldemort from getting the technology from in the rooms where the prophecies are. The death eaters grabbed them all and shoved them through the veil. They're gone, Harry. They're dead. Only Luna and Lupin survived that trip besides you and I."

Looking down, Harry swallowed. He remembered then.

"…why do I always forget?" He asked, voice barely a whisper, eyes downcast to the floor as though it would give him the answers to his question.

"Memory charm." Ginny whispered as she helped him over to his bed, even though he didn't need the help now. It seemed as though she'd explained this a lot before from her 'experienced' attitude.

"They charmed your mind so you wouldn't remember the night at all. Dad fixed most of it before he was killed, too." She told him gently, running her fingers through his hair as he lay down.

"Goodnight."

"'Night, Gin…"

And with that, he closed his eyes and fell into a fitful sleep.

xXxXx

Well, that's it. I hope you all liked it! Next chapter coming soon!


	2. Chapter 2

**Decaying Enchantment **

****

**Chapter 2 **

The next morning, Harry slowly drug himself out of bed.

The Grimmauld home was quiet, and he hated it.

Usually, the twins would be trying to invent something to cheer everyone up in the floor above him, but…

Not now.

Not since a year before.

Going down to the kitchen, he couldn't help but let out a small smile at seeing Remus standing in an apron at the stove cooking breakfast, Luna helping him.

He silently sat down at the table, watching as the two of them worked back and forth.

After a few minutes, Remus turned, and almost dropped the pan he was holding.

"Good Merlin, Harry! Don't scare me like that!" Remus breathed, a hand going over his heart.

"Good morning, Harry." Luna said in her slow drawl of a voice as she put food onto plates. "Has Ginny gotten up yet, or shall I go and give her a wake up call?"

"No, she's fine." Harry said. "She'll be down in a bit, like always, Luna."

"Oh, all right…" Luna said as she placed the four plates onto the table, sitting down to start eating, Remus doing the same once he had removed his apron.

"How did it go last night, Harry? You sure did come in worrying us…" Remus questioned.

"Nothing important." Harry murmured, eyes downcast to his plate as he started to slowly eat his food, glaring at it disdainfully.

"But you were in pain, Harry…" Remus pressed.

Harry let out a heavy sigh. "I'll tell you when Ginny gets down."

"Say what about me?"

Harry's gaze turned to the door. "Morning, Gin."

"Morning, Harry." Ginny said with a yawn as she moved to the table, sitting down to start eating. "What's going on?"

"All right…last night, I was in the back streets, like I was ordered to…" Harry started, placing down his fork. He wouldn't be able to eat and force himself to remember everything all at once. His memory seemed to escape him at times since his second incident at the ministry.

The three nodded as they listed.

"Find something bad, Harry?" Remus asked, raising a brow at him.

Harry nodded. "Yes…Voldemort's leading their cult."

The trio listening stopped, staring at him, Luna halfway through a bite, Ginny stopping with her fork almost to her mouth.

"You found him…?" Remus breathed out a moment later, voice thready, jaw slackening slightly.

Harry nodded grimly. "It wasn't pretty. He was torturing the muggles there, grinning, laughing, enjoying it. It was sickening." He shuddered. "I wore my invisibility cloak, so he didn't see me, per se, but he did sense me. He stopped the torturing, killing them. The green light continues to flash in my eyes every time I close them…" He looked at them, then immediately back down at the table, suddenly finding the wooden grooves interesting.

"He looked up and at me…I knew he couldn't see me, but he knew I was there. He knew exactly where I was. There, somehow, I could use magic easily…it was so strange. My magic took over…and before I knew it, I had shrunken the cloak and put it into my pocket, raised my wand and cast a curse at Voldemort…" He stopped, staring down at the table.

"What else?" Remus asked a few moments later, when he didn't continue.

"…I'm trying to remember…" Harry muttered. "After that, the next thing I remember, I was running from the police…and then I apparated back here…and you know the rest…"

"Just…try and remember, okay? If you do, we'll listen." Ginny told him gently. "Now…after you got back, you said that you'd figured out a way to defeat him. Do you remember what it was?"

"No…" Harry hissed, reaching both of his hands up to grip at his hair in frustration. "Why does this keep happening!"

"I don't know, Harry…but just try and remember."

Harry didn't move for a few moments, and then he looked up, swallowing. "I remember it now…"

"What is it?" Luna asked, speaking for the first time since he'd started his recollection.

"A locket…and Avada Kadavera…"

xXx

Harry walked down the street with Ginny beside him, both clutching at their wands. They were still on the main streets, but would soon be heading towards a place, the back alleys, which they never wanted to enter into.

"You sure you want to do this?" Harry asked, looking down at her.

Ginny's gaze shifted up to his, and she let out a small smile.

"You think I'd let you do this on your own?"

Harry gave off a small sigh. "No…you wouldn't…why wouldn't you, anyway?"

Ginny let out a small giggle, standing on tiptoe to give him a gentle kiss. "Come on, you know why. I love you."

"Oh. That's why." Harry joked back, leaning down to get another kiss. A moment later, though, they pulled apart, Harry swallowing.

"Oh crap…" He hissed just as a beam of red light flew towards him. He pushed Ginny out of the way, the beam just barely missing his arm. He gave out a heavy sigh of relief before remembering Ginny was there.

"Gin, get out of here." Harry said over his shoulder, hearing her picking herself up off the pavement behind him.

"I'm not leaving you, Harry!" Ginny snapped at him as she quickly pulled herself into a crouch, pulling her wand out of her cloak pocket.

"Ginny, I said for you to leave." He told her, flattening himself against the wall as another beam flew by him. "It's too dangerous."

"Yeah, like the Department of Mysteries wasn't dangerous!" Ginny snarled at him. "Expelliarmus!" She yelled, pointing her wand into the alley. "Now, Harry!"

"Stupefy!" Harry yelled, pointing his wand into the alley as he whipped it out of his cloak pocket as well.

Ginny pulled herself back up onto her feet and flattened herself against the wall opposite him in the entrance of the alley.

"You're right, Gin. Stupid thing to say." Harry told him. "You can come, but you sure as hell better watch out for yourself!"

"I will." Ginny said.

Serious emerald met gentle hazel in a locked gaze for a moment as another red beam shot forward. With a silent nod shared at the same time between the two of them, the both jumped out into the open, yells of "Expelliarmus!" and "Stupefy!" coming from their mouths in a rush of fury.

Cries and shouts of surprise signaled that they'd done what they were told, and they both ran further into the alley, Harry taking the lead to watch out for potential places that someone could be hiding out in.

"This is where I was last night…" Harry whispered. "We're almost there…"

"Good Merlin, Harry…I-I can feel the magic here…this is…amazing!" Ginny murmured, absolutely fascinated.

Harry looked back at her, seeing the look in her eyes. He grabbed her arm to stop her, and pulled her wand from her hand.

"Harry, what the hell! Give me back my wand!" Ginny said frantically, making a wild grab for it, but missed.

"Gin, listen to me. Do not let the magic take over. It's like a drug, Gin. …now it is, anyway…but listen to me, you cannot let the magic do what it wants, do you understand me?"

Ginny swallowed, nodding.

"All right." Harry said, taking a deep breath as he cautiously put her wand back into the palm of her hand. "Ready?"

"Ready."

Harry nodded to her. "Let's do this, then…"

xXxXx

Well, that's chapter two. Chapter 3 coming soon! Please enjoy, and don't forget to review!


	3. Chapter 3

**Decaying Enchantment **

**Chapter 3 **

The duo dashed into a wide, open space, dodging red beams and flashes of light.

"Stupefy!" Harry cried, pointing his wand in random directions, away from where he knew Ginny to be.

"Expelliarmus!" He could hear Ginny yelling back behind him. The two were back to back, working together, if only to make sure that one didn't harm the other.

Before the duo knew it, though, they were surrounded.

The clap of boots on pavement could be heard coming from the dark, a sadistic laugh and the sounds of a slow clap reached their ears.

"Wonderfully done, Harry Potter. Wonderfully done…oh! And look! It'sss hisss girlfriend!" The voice was an inhuman hiss.

The death eaters around them let out laughs to join into their master's fun as he came out of an alley, cloaked in, literally, darkness and black.

"You leave her out of this!" Harry snarled, stepping in front of her, but he heard her gasp. "Gin?"

He could tell that wants were pointed at the two of them, but he didn't know that they were right at her chest and throat.

She didn't dare speak, and he could feel her heart beating against his back, could hear her frantic pants of breath.

"Why have you come looking for me, Harry Potter? Did you want to die for good thisss time?" Voldemort sneered, letting out a sadistic laugh.

"If I bring you down with me, then yeah, you got it right." Harry said as his hand gripped tighter around his wand.

"Oh?" Voldemort asked, laughing again. "And how do you suppose you're going to do that? You can't kill me, you should know that."

"Oh, I can." Harry said, reaching into his pocket. "And I can do it with this."

He reached into his pocket, pulling out a black locket with initials carved into it.

Voldemort's laughter died and subsided almost instantaneously as he saw this.

"Where, my boy, did you get that?"

"Like I'll ever tell you." Harry spat out.

"Harry…" Ginny warned.

"I know what I'm doing, Gin, leave it." Harry said, looking back to Voldemort. "Dumbledore died helping me get a fake one like this. But I found the real one." Harry told him. "You killed my friends, my relatives, my family, my parents. You really think you're going to get away this time?"

Voldemort sneered. "That isn't the only horcrux there is, Potter."

"I know." Harry growled. "I've already taken care of the diary, Godric's sword, Rowena's locket, Helga's cup and Salazar's ring."

Voldemort seemed to, somehow, pale. "You didn't."

"Oh, I did." Harry snarled. "And, with one flick of my wand, this will be gone too." Harry said, tossing it up into the air slightly.

"No! Stop!" Voldemort hissed, grabbing at his wand, but it was too late.

Harry pointed his wand at it, then slammed the point against the locket's center, and it shattered into oblivion.

"You…will…pay for that!" Voldemort hissed, pointing his wand, it seemed, in Harry's direction. "Avada Kadavera!"

Harry moved out of the way, but as he did, he heard a scream. Someone screaming his name.

"Harry!!"

He turned, fear in his gaze as he watched the beam soar and slam Ginny right in the chest. She screamed, then fell to her knees, and over sideways.

"No! Ginny!" Harry cried, tears of fear and disbelief filling his eyes as he ran to the girl, kneeling beside her. He could hear Voldemort laughing behind him.

"Ginny…Gin, wake up…" Harry whispered, shaking her shoulders, the tears starting to stream down his face in fast procession. "No, Ginny…"

He looked down at her, only seeing her peaceful face, eyes closed. What he didn't see, though, was the very slow rise and fall of her chest and the gem around her neck.

"You…" Harry snarled once he had gently set his seemingly dead lover on the ground behind him, jumping to his feet. "You killed her…"

"Yes, I did." Voldemort laughed. "Are you going to stop me now?"

Harry growled, but stopped as he heard a word hissed that he hadn't been expecting.

"Crusio!"

The alley around him lurched and then tipped sideways as his insides knotted and twisted in excruciating pain. His skin felt as though it were aflame as he heard a hoarse, agonized scream fill the air. Balling his hands into fists, he curled around himself, feeling his guts twisting together in knots tighter and tighter.

Just when he thought that he'd start clawing his own eyes out in an attempt to stop the pain, the curse was lifted, and he clung to the cool pavement of the alley, panting and wheezing.

As he came back to his senses, he heard laughter around him.

"Oh, look at poor little, defenseless Potter. All alone, with no one to help him." Voldemort hissed, and he started laughing, his death eaters joining the chorus.

"Crusio!" He hissed again, and Harry writhed in agony at his feet. He lifted the curse a moment later, watching Harry curl in on himself to try and hide away and stop the pain.

"You want to just stop it?" Voldemort asked, looking down at him.

Harry didn't answer, the only sound coming from him being a whimper and a hiss of pain.

"I'll end it for you now, and you won't be of any trouble to anyone any longer."

"…I…don't…think so!" Harry hissed, pointing his wand at Voldemort as fast as he could.

Voldemort was doing the same.

Both yelled, at the same time, "Avada Kadavera!"

The alley filled with an eerie glow, and it soon faded into nothing, leaving only air and trashy bins in the alley intersection.

There was nothing left of Harry Potter, Voldemort, or his death eaters, or so they say.

What no one saw that night, though, was a young man slipping away from the scene with a young woman, hand in hand as they fiddled with a gem around each of their necks.

Maybe then they would get some peace, and have the chance to use magic, then.

As they walked, and laughed, they didn't see the figure emerging from the shadows behind them to take a step and turn. With a loud crack, they were gone, and the young man and woman didn't hear a single thing.

xXxXx

Well, that's it! I hope you enjoyed it! Please review, and if you want a sequel, please tell me! Thanks so much!


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